Whoa. Not at all what I was expecting when this started. DEATH HAWKS are a band from Riihimäki. The band's own biography states: DEATH HAWKS, the psychedelic rock group with the intoxicating concoction of modern music and aquarian era aesthetics. At the same time DEATH HAWKS master the very core of rock itself and the polar opposite of it. Okay. I'm really not sure what any of that means. What I do know is that "Psychic Harmony" is not a "metal" album in any sense of the word whatsoever. Not even close.

So, here's the deal. I listen to an incredibly wide range of music, ranging from the heaviest doom metal to folk, bluegrass and everything in between. I could easily pan this album with negativity just from the opening track; after all, this is a metal music review site, or I could try to approach this review with some objectivity and open mindedness. I'll try for the later, though I'm not sure many of our regular readers will be as welcoming to DEATH HAWKS or their new Svart Records release, "Psychic Harmony". So here goes....

The album opens with "Secret Isle" and immediately you can pick up on the vibe they're going for. That 70's mix of soft rock mixed with "fuck me" jazz. I really didn't care for it back then, and honestly it doesn't grab me now. Swirling keyboards, effect laden vocals with sweeping harmonies drawing one away, then back to the laser keys effects all backed up by what almost seems like a drum program. "Love Like We Do", begins much the same, except here the vocals have more of an 80's New Wave presentation. Musically, things here, are much the same, though I will admit that the psychedelic aspect the band seeks seems more prevalent here. "Re-Run" might be the most accessible track, and if pressed to recommend a track, this would likely be the one, or perhaps "Whisper", which ironically, is the edgiest track.

The tempo of these tracks really remains constant at a snails pace. Beginning with "Aleya", on through "I Am A Tree", I simply found myself tuning out. Between the autotune, synthetic sounding drums, and dated keyboards, there was simply nothing here that grabbed me. In fact, the songs all began to sound the same to me. I will say that sonically the album's sound is wonderful. It's just not that interesting musically. Perhaps this would be an appropriate album for dinner background music or maybe that special intimate time. Otherwise, I just don't see any of our readers being at all interested here.